The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1887-03-10
TALMAGE'S SERMON
A Telling Discourse on the Swell
ing of Jordan"
How Those who viii Nav Find Means TO
Resist the Flood Tides OF Tempta-
tion and Their Consequences-
Early Promises UnfuIfllIed-

SCI HuOu az tue DTOOhANn ldDernaCle, C1OSS
for his subject the Swelling Of Jordan
taking for his text:
II thou hast run with the footmen, and they
have wearied thee, then how canst thou con
tend with horsess And IL in the land OF peace,
wherein thou trustedst, they wearied thee, Their
how viii thou do in the swelling of JordanS-
Jeremiah xii, s.
jeremiah had become impatient with
his troubles. God saws TO him:
elf you can not stand these small trials
and prosecutions, what are you going to
do when the greater trials and persecu.
tons comet If you have been running a
race with footmen and they have beaten
you, what chance is there that you will
outrun horsesl'
And then the figure is changed. You
know, in April and May the Jordan over.
flows its banks, and the waters rush
violently on, sweeping every thing before
them. And God says to the prophet:
'lf You are overcome with smaller
trials and vexations, which have assault
ed you. what will you do when the trials
and annoyances and prosecutions of life
come in a freshetf
If in the land OF peace. wherein thou trust
edst they wearied thee, then how will thou dc
in the swelling OF JordanY
HOW DO WITHOUT CHRISTI
lpropose, if God will help me. IN a very
practical way to ask if it is such diff
cult thing to get along without the relig-
ION of Jesus Christ, when things are COM
parativelv smooth, what will we do with
out Christ amid the overpowering misfort-
uEes and disasters of life that may come
upon usi If troubles. slow as footmen,
surpass US, what will we do when they
take the feet of horses! and if now in our
lifetime we are beaten back and sub
merged of sorrows because we have not
the religion of Jesus to comfort US, what
will we do when we stand in death, and
we feel all around about US 1.-The swell
ing of Jordan" The fact that you
have come here, my brother, my
sister, shows that you have some things
you believe in common with myself. You
believe that there is God. There is not
an Atheist in all this house. | do not be-
lieve there ever was a real Atheist in all
the world. Napoleon was on a ships
deck bound For Egypt. 1t was bright
starry night, and as he pacei the deck,
thinking of the great affairs of the state
and of battle, he heard two men on deck
in conversation about God: one saying
there was a God and the other saying
there was none, Napoleon stopped and
looked up at the starry heavens, and then
he turned to these men in conversation,
and said:
Gentlemen. l heard one of you say
there is no God: if there is no Col, will
you please to tell me who made all that!'
Aye, if you had not been persuaded of
il before, you are persuaded Of 1t now
for the shining heavens declare the glory
of God and the earth shows his handi-
work.
But YOU believe more than that: you
believe that there was a Jesus; YOU be-
heve that there was a cross; you believe
that you have an immortal soul; YOU be-
lieve that it must be regcneratei by the
spirit of God, or you can never dwell in
bliss eternal think that a great many
# you viii say that you believe it is i'm
portant to have the religion of Jesus
Christ every day Of our life. to smooth our
tempers and purify our minds, and hol /
US imperturbablc amid all the ANNOYANCE
and yeXations Of life. You AMI | have
seen so many men trampled down by mis-
fortunes because they had no faith in
Jesus, and you say to yourself:
If they were SO easily overcome by the
trials of life, what win it be when greater
misfortunes come upon them-heart-
breaking calamities, tremendous grefs:"
when our fortune goes, and we look upon
the grave of our children, and our houses
are desOlatc, what will become of usP
What sad thing it is to see men all un-
helped of God, going out to fight giants of
trouble; no closet of prayer in which to
retreat, no promise of mercy to soothe
the soul, no rock Of refuge in which to
hide from the blast. Oh. when the swift
coursers OF trouble arc brought up, champ
ing and painting for the race. and the rcins
are thrown upon their necks, and the lath-
cred Hanks at every spring feel the stroke
OF the lash, what can we do on foot with
them! II. having run with the footmcn,
they wearied US, how can we contend with
horses!
We have all yielded to temptation We
have been surprised afterward that 80
small an induccment could have deceived
us from the right How insignificant
a temptation has sometimes captured
our soul! And. if this is so,
my dear brother. what will it be
when we come to stand in the presence of
temptation that Frustrated David, and a
Moses, and a Peter. and some of the
mightiest men in all Gods kingdom! Now
we are honest; but suppose we were
placed in some path of life, as many of
Gods children have been, where all the
forces of earth and hell combine to capt
ure the souls Without Jesus we would 90
down under it. If already we have been
beaten by Insignificant footmen, we would
be distanced 10000 leagues by the horses.
All, / don't like to hear a man say:
81 could not commit such a sin as that.
l can't understand how a man could be
carried away like that"
Won don't know what Won onnl6 10 if
the grace of God lets you. You know
what John Bunyan said when he saw a
man staggering along the street, thor
ouglV imbruted in his habits. He said
There goes John Bunyan, but for the
grace Of Godn'
can say when l see one utterly fallen:
There goes De Witt Talmage, but for
the grace of Cod"
If we have been delivered from tempta-
ton it is because the strong arm of the
Lord Almighty has been about US, and
not because we were any better than they
1t is a great folly to borrow trouble. l.
we can meet the misfortunes of to-day we
will be able to meet the troubles OF to
morrow; but suppose, now, II through
lack of the religion OF Jesus, we are
overthrown by small sorrows, does no
our common sense teach US that we can
not stand up against great oness II we
can not carry pound, can we carry ont
thousand pounds! If we are discounted
coming into battle with one regiment, 1
brigade will cut US to pieces. II we arr
unfit to cope with one small trial, won'1
we be overcome by greater onest L
the footmen are too much for US, Won'tth
odds be more fearful against us when w
contend with horsesi | thank God tina
l., hi